


Scene From a Smoke Break

by humandevolution



Category: X-Men (Alternate Timeline Movies)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Still Have Powers, Charles is a bit of a twat, Co-workers, Erik is Crushing Harder than a 12-year Old Girl, Erik is not good at social situations, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-29
Updated: 2016-07-29
Packaged: 2018-07-27 10:19:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7614265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/humandevolution/pseuds/humandevolution
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Erik has a terribly obvious crush on his co-worker, Charles.</p>
<p>An "I started smoking because I saw that you smoke and I wanted to talk to you on our smoke break" AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	Scene From a Smoke Break

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written in a while, and it seemed fine to start with something a little fluffy and frivolous. I've got ideas for more in depth stuff I'd like to do - exploring the characters and whatnot. But here's the thing. Cutesy.
> 
> Please, appreciate the irony.

"I don't even know why he's _like_ that," Hank grumbled, wrapping his left arm around his torso as he took a drag of his cigarette. "I only...I just wanted dinner."

Charles rolled his eyes, chuckling around the butt of his own cigarette.

"You started with...ah...what was it," his brow furrowed for a moment. "Ah! 'Ya know what they say about big feet, right?'"

His American accent was dreadful, but Hank's face turned an awful shade of crimson, making Charles choke, he was laughing so hard.

"I dunno why you have to be such a _cock_ about it, Charles," Hank griped, stubbing out his filter on the brick wall face and flicking it away onto the ground. "See ya inside."

Charles sighed, watching his young friend walk away before staring morosely at the saliva-coated half of cigarette he had yet to finish, laying limply on the sidewalk. Would it be such a terrible thing just to...pick it up? Had it been five seconds yet? Should he start the mourning rituals now? Begin the five stages of grief?

He was about to say fuck it and bend over to get it, but the smell of burnt cotton candy wafted toward him, and he followed the scent with his head until he saw Erik, standing a few feet away, obviously trying to look casual but failing in the cutest way. Charles quirked a brow at his coworker before walking over to stand beside him, against his stretch of brick wall. As Erik puffed another breath of smoke, Charles gave him a lazy once-over.

_Delicious as always, but still a twat_ , Charles concluded, as he always did when Erik did this.

Erik was horrible at social interaction. Charles didn't even know how he managed to maintain a job in retail, of all things. Though he was craftily designed, by God or whomever had decided that someone like Erik, with his lean muscles and piercing eyes and ginger - _ginger_ \- hair, his personality left much to be desired. Or, well, on the surface. Charles rarely let himself indulge in such...candy...as the minds of others, but Erik's mind was too much of a temptation. Erik knew that Charles had seen parts of himself that he hadn't shown others, and Charles knew he knew. It was their little secret - or, well, understanding. Erik was fond of using his own talents to exact revenge on demonic customers - most frequently slamming the doors on them just a moment before stepping through or making all of the change in their pocket melt into one ball.

It was rather amusing, and, after being on his feet all day and dealing with the horrible side of the human race, Charles didn't scold him like he probably should have.

"Just ask me out already," he blurted out, rolling his eyes when Erik started coughing, rubbing his throat gingerly when he looked at Charles, surprised.

"Am I that obvious?" he asked, balking at the very idea. "I...I thought I was being..."

Charles smirked, looking at the vape in Erik's hand.

_That makes you look like a douche, Erik_ , he thought at the man. _I'm not one to exactly...judge a person for their habits, but on you..._

Charles made a mental sound at the same time as he grunted in disgust.

"Cigarette smoke makes my lungs burn uncomfortably," Erik shrugged, a pleasant pink color dusting over his high cheekbones.

"Then why the Hell are you out-oh." 

Charles was quiet for a moment.

_Yeah..._ Erik thought, looking into the distance with a look as if he had just said something unbearably stupid and would pay for it.

Charles chuckled, thinking, _Oh, you definitely will._

Erik looked over at him with an appraising expression, sighing after a moment and bumping his shoulder against Charles's.

"Why couldn't you just ask me out though?" Charles asked after a few minutes, taking Erik's vape and sucking out some of the vapor before blowing it out slowly.

He ignored Erik's intent gaze.

"Are you emotionally slow or something?"

Erik shifted uncomfortably, saying, "Well...um...most people don't think I have feelings."

_I'm not most people._

_I know._

"I do...I have...um...feelings," Erik mumbled, scratching behind his ear, and Charles smiled at him.

Then they stood in silence for a while.

"This is fucking awful, Erik. Why would you vape, of all things? I feel depressed just holding this thing!" Charles eyed the purple abomination in his hands with an unnecessary amount of horror, trying to ease the tension with comedy. When that didn't work, he just...jumped. "And I'm glad I can finally stop smoking. Jeezus."

Charles caught Erik's quick head turn toward him in his peripheral vision, and now he was the one blushing.

_For Christ's sake..._

"I...uh...I was going to quit," Charles admitted slowly, eyeing Erik from the side of his eye, "but then you started coming out... And I decide to keep doing it for a little while longer. I'm not saying you're the reason I didn't quit. It's quite hard. There are studies that show-"

Erik grabbed Charles' chin and turned the man's head, so they were staring into each others eyes at a very close distance. Charles went cross-eyed. Or, well, three-quarters. Seventy five percent.

"There...there may not even be a correlation," Charles added weakly, eyes searching Erik's.

Erik clicked the roof of his mouth with his tongue, and then pulled back looking thoughtful. The silence stretched between them for a few minutes, before Charles realized Erik wasn't going to say anything, and he huffed.

"You should have kissed me...right then," he offered kindly, and Erik's nose crinkled.

"Would you have...wanted that?"

Charles rolled his eyes for the thousandth time, it felt like, but he doubted he could ever stop rolling his eyes at this _twat_.

_What?_ Erik thought to him, looking confused, and Charles just grinned, before dropping the vape and grabbing Erik's face with both hands and kissing him messily.

When they pulled away from each other, Erik was flushed deliciously, and Charles guessed he was red as a tomato if the warmth in his cheeks was anything to go by.

He cleared his throat.

"I'll...uh...we better get back to..."

"Hell," Erik nodded in agreement, and they walked inside, arms barely brushing as they went.

**Author's Note:**

> No real vapes were harmed in the making of this drabble.


End file.
